The unbidden invasion- a Leyna tale
by Oi opakio
Summary: Hephaestus, the ruler of the Spanish empire, is tightening is vice-like grip on the island of Puerto Rico. There is no telling which side the other countries will support, but things look bad for Bellona and her daughter, Reyna, Queen and Princess of the island.
1. Chapter 1

_**Reyna - Spanish - Queen**_

Reyna, air to the Puerto Rican throne, stood stoney-faced as the messenger finished reading the scroll. The news wasn't good. She cast an anxious glance at her mother as the queen dismissed the nervous man, who scurried like a a scolded spaniel away from the 'danger zone'. Queen Bellona was not quick to show mercy.

The queen stared at the closed door for a good thirty seconds. Reyna could feel the tension building in the room, and couldn't help but expel some of her nervous energy by tapping an impatient finger on her thigh.

Finally, Bellona drew herself from angry thoughts. "What do I do?" She asked. Although Reyna was the only other person in the room, she could sense the queen wasn't addressing her. It was more spoken though, a trait the queen only allowed herself to display in front of her family, one of which was dead and the other her daughter.

Reyna was unsure of what to say. What could she say? There was no words for the situation that presented itself to the Puerto Rican royalty. The Puerto Ricans would fight hard and honourably, but they were no match against the likes of the bigger, more powerful empires. Empires like Spain.

"Mother?" Reyna asked, unable to bear the silence any longer.

The queen turned, a frustrated eyebrow raised. When her daughter, blushing under the sudden attention, remained silent, Bellona softened. Slightly.

"It's okay my daughter. I am not angry at you, as you know. It those intrusive, good-for-nothing Spaniards whom are bothering me," she reassured.

"I guessed that," Reyna replied, a playful tone entering her voice. Bellona's eyes gleamed. It seemed the Ramierez-Amellano family, despite their serious and determined attitude, seemed to bear a family trait which allowed them to communicate otherwise hidden humour through their eyes. No-one else knew this but them, of course.

"Oh but _what _are we going to do, mi hija?" Reyna looked down. Her mother was the strongest woman she knew, yet as age bore down on her, the weigh of her job and imposing invasion of the Spaniards seemed to be starting to crack her.

"We formulate a tactical plan, that's what we do; it's what you're best at," Reyna said.

"You're right," Bellona snapped from her mood like Reyna had slapped her. She beckoned her daughter to sit beside her on an intricately carved wooden bench, depicting ancient Roman battle victories. All in favour of a certain Puerto-Rican goddess of war, of course.

The two discussed their thoughts and ideas while pouring over the scroll delivered to them that morning. King Hephaestus basically had them surrounded from sea, with heavily weaponed battle ships. Ephaestus' navy had always been the best: he was a renowned inventor and had influence through his wife, the queen of France, for warriors to make up his army.

There was no telling what part any other county would play in the inevitable conflict. Spain was lucky to be allied with France and China. All three were formidable enemies on their own! Then there was Britain and North America. It was probably safe to say that Britain wouldn't support Spain. There was rising tension between the two countries as it was. As for America, King Posseidon would try to stay out of this whole thing. It wasn't his business in the violent affairs of others.

Finally, the two managed to come to the best conclusion possible: they couldn't win by force. Queen Bellona looked almost pained to admit to it, but once she did, the sooner they could start to put to good use the _tactics _she was just as good at.

"We invite the King over to discuss matters. We then, uh, capture him. Spain can't attack with out a king," Reyna proposed.

Bellona shook her head, "Spain can always replace their king. Hephaestus has a son of about your age. And anyhow, France and China would surely destroy after that." Reyna reddened in frustration, her impulsive tapping growing faster, like she wanted to drill a hole through her thigh.

"I know!" She finally exclaimed, "why can't we invite the King's _son _to politically discuss matters. Then we capture _him_ and hold _him _hostage. If anyone attacked, we simply kill Spain's heir!"

Bellona almost looked like she wanted to disagree – _she _was the one who cam up with the ideas – but she had to admit, her daughter's idea was perfect. She had raised Reyna well.

"You are right daughter," she complimented, "send for a scribe. We have a letter to write."


	2. Chapter 2

"The King requests your presence, my Prince," the slave said, before fleeing as soon as Leo nodded. He hated how all the slaves and servants in the palace seemed to be metaphorically walking of broken glass permanently, and treated him like _he _was the one to make them do it! It wasn't as if their lives were particularly difficult; Aphrodite only had a _few _violent tantrums.

He wondered what the King wanted. It was rare his father called upon his presence – or the presence of _anybody – _and Leo had a sneaking suspicion he wouldn't like the news.

Casting a glance in his mirror, he walked to the door. So long as he looked presentable for the palace, which was a task in itself, his father didn't mind what his son wore, so Leo kept it to the bare minimum. Knee-length Greek tunic, clean sandals and a circlet of gold which drowned amongst his curly hair and had to be taken off whenever he worked.

He raised a hand to knock on the oaken door of his father's library, the place he'd been told to go.

"Entrar," Hephaestus' tired voice called. He pused the door open. It creaked slightly and he made a mental reminder to fix that afterwards. He hated things not working to their best, and it would only take a splash of oil and a...

"Stop thinking about the door, son," Hephaestus chided. Blinking as he was brought harshly back to the real world, he took in his father, clad in formal dress, at a place on a central table. The curtains were shut tightly, the thick material blocking the daylight completely, and the room was lit only by candle. It was dismal.

"How did you know I was?" Leo asked, slightly annoyed at being caught out, but also trying to distract from the fact that his father was obviously in the middle of sorting out the mess with Puerto Rico. The King ensured that all plans were made in complete privacy. And he had invited Leo. That couldn't be good at all. What did _Leo _know about that sort of stuff? Nyssa, his older sister, was the one who made battle plans; Leo was more of the inventor. They'd both broken off and excelled at a different talent of their father.

Hephaestus ignored the question distractedly, a sign, Leo though, that whatever he had to say was more important that doors or the apparent physic nature his father had displayed just then. It was a struggle for Leo to stay still for long. He hoped that whatever his father had to say, he would say it soon.

"You're going to Puerto Rico, son," Hephaestus said.

"_Finally _you said som– wait, what?"

Hephaestus explained, "Queen Bellona has requested for _you _to travel there to discuss our two countries' current situation. I have already send word of your coming, and you will set sail this night."

Leo's mind was in turmoil. He didn't want to sail to enemy territory without the protection of his father. He didn't want to sail to enemy territory at _all! _He was contempt enough here, living in the palace with his Father and sister, tinkering with inventions all day, and staying up late to continue doing just that. What's more, he had never had a good encounter with powerful women before, and wasn't keen to spend who knew how long discussing the fact that 'he' was invading their island.

"Why didn't you ask my permission before you organised all this," he asked quietly. As soon as the words left his mouth, the anger and panic dimmed within him. All he could feel was betrayed. His father never knew how to handle people, much like Leo, and would often end up hurting the people closest to him without even realising it at the time.

"I knew you would refuse, son, and I need you to do this."

"What will I even be _doing. _Sitting round a table with tea and scones, casually chatting about the fact of our imminent_ and uncalled-for invasion?"_

"Don't be stupid. You just distract them a while so I can get a tighter hold on them. The day after you leave, our ships can cut off their food supply. They'll be eating from our hands within the week."

Leo sighed. There was no point arguing, not when his father was so convinced about something. All he could do was go along with it.

"Can I at least have Princess Piper come with me?" He asked. The King nodded vaguely, evidently closing the matter. So long as Leo did what he wanted, he was happy with that.

;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;

"Piper!" Leo yelled. He hadn't seen his friend in several months and he had missed her. A lot. The two had known each other since they were born, and throughout their childhood years had rarely separated. It was only when they entered their teens that politics had taken over their lives and they ended up being kept at home, learning how to be a good representative of their country and how to speak the 'six major languages' of the world: Spanish, English, French, Chinese, Ancient Greek and Latin.

Leo had never really bothered to learn Chinese and Latin because the situation in which he needed them never presented itself.

They flew into each other's arms, probably displacing a lot of expensive clothing in doing so. But what did that matter? As soon as he was out of his father's sight, Leo would revert to his usual comfortable attire.

Once they had bidden goodbye to their families, the ship set sail from the Spain. Piper and Leo spoke on deck, catching up on what had happened and Piper hearing Leo out as he complained bitterly of his father's disregard of his feelings. Piper felt sorry for Leo, but was secretly pleased that they would be able to escape the tedious life of politics and such, to spend a few months with her childhood friend.

;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;

Reyna shifted uncomfortably in her seat. Beside her, Bellona watched the ship intently as it grew bigger as it neared the island. Ships were so slow, Reyna thought, it was almost like it was teasing her; so close yet so far. All she wanted was to get her hands round that _prince's _neck and throttle him until her begged for her forgiveness and ordered the fleet surrounding her home to withdraw.

Unfortunately, such actions were not 'ladylike' in Spanish culture, and would be considered offensive. The thought of it!

As the ship got nearer, Reyna began to be able to make out more details. Standing at the prow was the prince himself, dressed in a white tunic trimmed with gold, contrasting very attractively against the colour of his skin. Not that that mattered. She could make out the glimmer of gold through his black hair, so he definitely _was _the prince, though there had been no portraits painted of him, possibly because of childish elven face that he bore.

But he wasn't unattractive, not that that meant anything.

Reyna remained poker-faced, even when he smiled at her, a childish, almost infectious grin. As he exited the ship, a girl, Reyna recognised her as the Daughter of Aphrodite, Princess Piper of France, walked beside him.

"Hola, Reina," he addressed the queen, nodding his head in respect, "y hola Reyna," with a sparkle of amusement in his eyes.

Reyna scowled, "I would prefer for you to speak in Greek, please."

"That's right," Bellona added, "out nations may both speak Spanish, but it is a very different language here. After all, Spain stopped ruling Puerto Rico centuries ago." She added the last bit pointedly, which made Leo blush and look away. It was very obvious to Reyna that he was hopeless at being the ambassador he was supposed to be.

Thankfully on his part, Piper jumped in, "of course, Queen Bellona, things seem to change a lot."

"They do indeed," Bellona replied stiffly, "and even when something appears to be happening, that doesn't mean it will." The tension was so high in the air, Reyna could almost taste it. The indirect references towards the Spanish invasion weren't doing much to help, and Piper and Bellona were having some sort of glare off.

Reyna decided to move things along. She ushered Leo and Piper to their respective rooms. Leo was the furthest away from the entrance, close to the dungeons, though he didn't know that. Reyna kept a cold expression, even when he attempted to make polite discussion. It was obvious he was feeling painfully awkward, and inwardly Reyna laughed, though the only part of her amusement that made it to her face, showed through her eyes.

"What is it?" Leo asked her. They were alone in the corridor, and Reyna was pleased to feel her dagger at her hip.

"What is what?"

"Well, at first you looked like you wanted to kill me. _Now_... now it's like you only want me to suffer great pain. Uh, your eyes have lightened a shade," he explained awkwardly.

"I don't know what you mean." She turned to leave.

"Wait! What's happening. I mean – I was invited here for a politcal talk, yes? When will that be?"

"You can spend the rest of tody as you please. After your travel, I'm sure you're too tired to be thinking adequate sense. Tea's at seven in the dining hall."

"But I don't know my way around," he gestured a the hall, which looked the same as any other, "could you – could you perhaps show me round?" Woah, Reyna felt most of the blood in her body rush to her face. What was she meant to say. She had been prepared for a stuck-up, violent savage, n


End file.
